Glossary
The English version of our glossary is currently under construction and will be regularly updated.
Climate model
A numerical representation of the climate system based on the physical, chemical and biological properties of its components, their interactions and feedbacks, and which considers all or certain known properties of the system.
A numerical representation of the climate system based on the physical, chemical and biological properties of its components, their interactions and feedbacks, and which considers all or certain known properties of the system. The climate system can be depicted using models of varying complexity, i.e., for each component or combination of components, a modelling spectrum or modelling hierarchy can be defined that differs in terms of e.g. the number of spatial dimensions, the extent to which physical, chemical or biological processes are explicitly included, or the extent to which empirical parametrisations are used instead. Climate models are used as research tools to investigate and simulate the climate, but also for operational purposes, including monthly, seasonal and multi-year climate predictions. Read more about sea ice models here.